1) Heath Ledger
The ultimate controversial comic book movie casting that turned out great, however, has got to be Heath Ledger. When it was announced that the Brokeback Mountain actor – who had generally played likeable characters – would take on the role of perhaps the most iconic villain of all time, fans were not pleased.
Yet when The Dark Knight arrived – shortly after Ledger’s untimely death – his unique portrayal of the Clown Prince of Crime blew everyone away, and cast a very high bar for other cinematic villain performances to try and match for years to come.
In short, Ledger’s turn as the Joker is one of the most acclaimed performances in a comic book movie. As of 2016, he is in fact the only actor to win an Academy Award for a role in a superhero film. That’s how impressive his work was.
The message here, kids, is next time you’re not sure about a piece of casting, just hold your opinion until the movie comes out – you might just be surprised.